LETTERS

Motorcycles are not dangerous; they are a part of us. Everyone who has a limited knowledge of the great two wheels seems to harbour this misconception that one day every rider is going to die on a bike. The fact of the matter is that you must be ready to face the inevitable, because nobody can escape death. So why blame motorcycles? Of course, we need to be more cautious and sensible on the road.

About 85 per cent of the ordinary riders are sensible on the road; they wear proper riding gear, follow the traffic rules and they don’t harm anyone in a wanton manner. On the other hand, there are those idiotic people who, being rich, get their hands on powerful machines and, more often than not, become a threat to others. Whenever such people find an open road, they twist the throttle and, being devoid of the requisite skill and experience, tend to collide with an innocent rider/driver. In many circumstances it is the innocent man who loses his life. And then people start believing that all riders are a threat to the rest of the roadusers. Needless to add, the ordinary motorcyclist becomes vilified for no fault of his.

A greenhorn, even though stinking rich, should not go straightaway for a big and powerful bike. I would advise such a person to first try a 250/300-cc bike. Learn your skills, master them and only then upgrade to a 600/650cc motorcycle. Even then one needs to get used to the stunning power delivery of such bigger capacity motorcycles.

The choice of a big bike needs to be precise. One cannot choose a bike that is ill-suited to one. Just go step by step — that’s my advice. There is more to life than just speed.

Rahul Allan, Bengaluru

Dear Rahul,

You make some pertinent points. It is always advisable to graduate from smaller bikes to more powerful ones. As you rightly maintain, wearing safety gear at all times is imperative.